100 Things I Love About Sherlock Holmes
by Aleine Skyfire
Summary: She loves it that she's his friend, that he's Victorian, that he took in Watson, that he lets her call him "Sherlock" every now and then. She loves it that he calls her "Beth" sometimes. Shippy!fic, dedicated to Riandra.


**Author's Note:**

Well, howdy there, strangers! ;D Having not written for this fandom in a long time and yet having wanted to, I decided to pull up this old-ish file and dust it off a bit. So, here we go: the first fifty of one hundred things that… Beth Letrade, yes, loves about Sherlock Holmes. Allow me to get a couple of things out of the way, first?

1. This "story" is unashamedly shippy.

2. This story holds to the belief that Holmes would not be pleased with a certain slash pairing, but this is also not intended to offend shippers of that pairing.

3. This story also has Christian!Holmes, which tends to be implied, anyway, in my stories.

4. Absolutely NOTHING here is meant to be offensive! Really truly!

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**Disclaimer:** I could not begin to tell you what I'd do with Beth if I had the rights to her—unfortunately, I do not. Nor do I have the rights to clone!Moriarty. Robo!Watson… um, DiC is welcome to keep him. I'd rather have the real John Watson… Sherlock Holmes belongs to the world, no ifs, buts, or maybes.

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**==100 Things I Love About Sherlock Holmes==**

_To Riandra, my best friend, my co-conspirator, and roleplayer of the best romantic!Holmes ever_

1. Not only do I _know_ him, but I'm _friends_ with him. The man said so himself!

2. That he's adapted beautifully to 22nd century life, but he's still so very Victorian. It's a part of what makes him, him.

3. That he befriended and took in Watson. So my old compudroid is not the real John, and I know it and Sherlock knows it. But he's still Watson and he's still special, and Sherlock knows that, too.

4. That Sherlock _lets_ me call him _Sherlock_ every now and then. Next to nobody called him that in his previous life (zed, that sounds weird!), so that's a pretty big privilege.

5. That he calls me _Beth_. Sometimes. Not often. But it's so very special when he _does_.

6. That his real name is _not_ William Sherlock Scott Holmes. _Honestly_, Mr. Baring-Gould!

7. That he cried when I took him to visit his brother's grave. It was just one tear and a lot more water in his eyes that never escaped, but it was still _crying_. It made me cry. He let me hug him.

8. The way he interacts with Moriarty. Let's get one thing straight: I _despise_ the guy. Him and his lab-rat of a henchman. But Holmes never loses his cool with Moriarty, even when the clonehead gives him good reason to be nothing short of furious.

9. And they're headed for another Reichenbach. It scares me, but it's true. And the reason that fact makes number 9 on this list is that Holmes would go through the whole Great Hiatus all over again if it meant ridding the world of tremendous danger that is James Moriarty.

10. But when he pretended he was dead in _this_ century, he didn't keep the ruse up for long. Zed, he even let me in on it before Watson! Thank God for greater sensitivity in a resurrected Great Detective.

11. That he _is_ the Great Detective. He's the best detective that ever was and ever will be.

12. That he agreed to the whole consultant-with-the-Yard and me-as-his-supervisor deal. That shows an enormous willingness to adapt to this new century (and to the modern role of females).

13. The way he blows Grayson out of the water every time. It's _awesome_.

14. On that note, the way that he blows _me_ out of the water without insults. That's not to say that they don't happen, but when you compare his behavior towards me with his behavior towards my poor ancestor, there's no comparison! It could be due to my gender or my intelligence, or it could even be that Holmes has just mellowed out with age (he _is_ technically _80_-something, weird as it is to think that). A mellowed-out Holmes… why am I suddenly of him in terms of ice cream?

15. That he _is_ mellowed-out. He can really be sweet and gentle and sympathetic, and it really stops you cold when he gets like that. It's not an act—that's really him, and it's wonderful.

16. That he really is black-haired and grey-eyed—sorry, but the whole Anglo-Saxon look was seriously throwing me for a loop, handsome though it was—and that he's getting his color back. Right now, his hair is dark brown and his eyes are almost completely grey.

17. And it's gorgeous. _He's_ gorgeous I mean, seriously, I've seen photos of him posted up online and I've seen the comments on those photos… I won't even repeat what those rabid fangirls say. Seriously, Sherlock will be blushing into the next millennium if he ever reads _half_ of what's posted about his good looks. But Sherlock Holmes _is_ beautiful. I don't mean that he's effete—there is _nothing_ feminine about him. But he's not macho-masculine, either (unlike a certain clone I could name). He's rather feline, and he just has this… this _ethereal_ quality to his appearance. If the man didn't drive me so nuts so often (and he _does_), I'd be entertaining more than a few worshipful thoughts. Zed, I do it anyway. I can't help it! No single gal can cross that man's path unscathed!

18. That he's _Victorian_. For all his "bohemianism" in his own age, he's like the model of chivalry. He's a knight in shining armor, and modern women don't quite know how to react to that. Trust me, I've been there. But it's nice being there, all the same.

19. That he didn't fight me even when I was trying to kill him under the influence of those zedding nanobots. Chivalrous much? He tried to get through to me, and it _almost_ worked. I heard him, I understood him, I _wanted_ to obey him. But the nanobots' hold on my body was too strong. He understood that, never tried to hurt me even to defend himself. That's a lot of self-control, courage, and respect. That's Sherlock for you.

20. That he never treated me weirdly afterwards. I had tried more than once to kill him, but that never affected our relationship. That would have put most people on their guard afterwards. Not Sherlock. _I_ was the one beating myself up over it all, over and over again, and Sherlock was the one helping me through it.

21. That he almost never lets his emotions get the better of him. He has a lot of self-control, and it acts as a counterpoint to my temper and impulsiveness. He may not need me often, but I _do_ need _him_.

22. That he _does_ have emotions, and I see them on a regular basis. If he was ever the cold reasoning machine depicted in the Canon, he does _not_ act like that now. Detached, yes, and downright icy towards criminals. But he smiles, he laughs, he gets depressed, he gets angry, he fears, he loves. People can talk all they want about Sherlock Holmes being unemotional. I know better, and I love it. The Great Detective that I know is not the same as his popular image, and I know which is the better man.

23. The way he acts around the Irregulars. Mind you, I really didn't appreciate their involvement in so many dangerous cases at first. But a) Sherlock can wear a mountain down to dust, and b) enough exposure to something will get you used to it. And you know what? The man is _great_ with kids. You kind of see that in the Canon, but I get to see it full-blown at least once a week. I almost think he's more comfortable with children and teens than he is with adults. Something about young people calls to him. He would have made a great father—zed, he could still be if he ever allowed himself to marry.

24. Which brings me to the fact that the man is _not_ blind. Nope, not by a long shot. Mr. Eternally-Confirmed Bachelor (so-called) _does_ notice when a woman is attractive. Zed, the look on his face when he first saw me in a dress! First, you'd have thought I was an alien; second, you'd have thought I was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. Which I could not have been—you can't forget Irene Norton. But the fact is, fangirls still have hope.

25. And that brings me to the fact that Holmes is not and never has been a sod in the slightest. Discovering the dubious and murky world of Shwatsonlock nearly broke his brain. He wrote up a respectful but borderline scathing rebuttal of the pairing for his blog, and I won't get into the reactions across the fandom to that post—let's just say that it was… interesting. But for the moment, he badly needed something to crowd unwanted ideas and images out of his poor mind, so he agreed to watch _My Fair Lady_ with me. It helped tremendously.

26. Yet another point: the man shares my love of old movies. Even the romantic ones, like Audrey Hepburn's _Roman Holiday_ and _Sabrina_. He appreciates the humor and irony and all that good stuff in the oldies. It's terrific.

27. For all that he's chivalrous and stuff, like all red-blooded males born to that entity known as the human race, he does _not_ understand women. No more now than he did in his "heyday". Nope, and that can lead to some interesting and even amusing stuff. But he's learning, at least, that he doesn't _have_ to understand women—just get along with us.

28. But he does understand that a girl's monthly cycle can make her miserable, and he's always willing to humor me when I'm low. A treasure, indeed.

29. His vocabulary is rubbing off on me. QED, the above paragraph. Not sure just yet whether that's actually a good thing or not…

30. Speaking of which (and that was so _not_ a pun), he's not bad at speaking modern English. But there's always just enough to his speech to let an observant person know that he is used to a higher form of the language.

31. And he picks up languages like nobody's business. For one long, drawn-out case, we both had to learn Japanese. Yes, that acclaimed hardest of all languages to learn. He could speak it fluently in two months. A year later, _I_ am _still_ having trouble with it.

32. He's a showoff. Sometimes, it's annoying. Other times, it's positively cute.

33. And the puppy-dog eyes. Oooo, those are positively _devastating_. If he really, reeeally wants something, I can't hold out for long. Sorry, I'm strong, but I'm just _not __**that**__ strong_. I hope his mom was.

34. Which reminds me: he's willing to answer most of my questions (and they are many) about the Canon. And I'm starting to work on his personal life as much as is politely and respectfully possible. And while _he's_ writing a biography for the real John H. Watson (which I get to proofread!), there's a strong possibility that he'll let _me_ write a biography for _him_. A Sherlockian can't ask for anything more!

35. He's not a bad writer. He really isn't. C'mon, "The Lion's Mane" was a good story—fine choice of a mystery to chronicle (who _doesn't_ want to see Holmes in his retirement?) and more-than-decent writing. And that biography for Dr. Watson is really coming along well.

36. Art in the blood, anyone? Yeah, he's an artist, and a zedding _excellent_ one at that. His incredibly detailed and lifelike sketches and paintings blow me away every time. He's far worthier to be featured in the National Gallery than many artists born since his previous life.

37. The man can actually _cook_. Cook and bake. The first time Watson let him do it, the compudroid was understandably dubious about it—_Sherlock Holmes_ and _kitchen_ just don't seem to belong in the same paragraph, let alone sentence. But he's actually really good in the kitchen, attributes it to the family cook in his childhood who gave in to those goll-darned puppy-dog eyes and allowed him to help her.

38. He actually enjoys pizza. Why is this on the list? Well, I just think it's so neat that the undeniably aristocratic Sherlock Holmes likes something as plebian as _pizza_.

39. When he's depressed, _wow_ is he _depressed_. Watson never exaggerated those "black moods." What is amazing and even a bit humbling is that, even when he's low, he lets me try to help him. He even appreciates it. Maybe he _does_ need me, after all…

40. The way his eyes are so incredibly expressive. There's nothing inscrutable about them, not by a long shot. And when those big eyes light up… wow, talk about spellbinding. …okay, look, _I'm_ not blind, either! I think we established that already!

41. And the way he can get excited about something just like a kid without actually seeming _childish_. For all the horrors he's witnessed in, well, _two_ lifetimes, I think he's never completely grown up inside. Maybe it helps keep him sane. All I know is that I wouldn't have him any other way.

42. The man loves Christmas. He does! _Supposedly_, he's not a sentimental man, but I've witnessed his first two Christmases in this lifetime, and he does enjoy the holiday season. Maybe now more than in his time, but he does.

43. Most Sherlockians, I think, would not believe just how _Christian_ their hero actually is. But he is. If he's not out on a case on Sundays, he's in church. He's even his church's youth group leader, and I've already said how good he is with kids. His youth group loves him. I've even gone to a few of those meetings, and, wow, he can deliver one mean Bible lesson.

44. 'Nother point in his favor: he's a great teacher. I don't know if he's always been like this or if he just got to be this way as he got older, but he's a great teacher. He doesn't believe in limitations, and he always pushes his students (myself included) to be their very best. And while he can be tough, he's also tremendously encouraging.

45. He's finally willing to learn about Outer Space. Good thing, too, in this day and age…

46. And he's a sci-fi aficionado. _Star Wars_, _Star Trek_, _Stargate_, _Babylon 5_, _Ghost in the Shell_… zed, he loves it all.

47. And he loves film scores. Nine times out of ten, if you visit 221B and music is playing, it's a movie score. Let no one say that this man does not have taste.

48. He's a maestro of a musician. I can do piano and guitar, but I don't exactly go in for the classics. He does, and, zeeed, is he incredible! Watson, the Irregulars, and I are desperately trying to find an affordable violin for him. We know he misses it.

49. He's right-brain as well as left-brain: he's as much of an artist as he is a scientist. That's not a combo you come across often, and, in his case, it's absolutely fantastic.

50. And have I even mentioned yet that he's funny? Deliberately so? Well, non-deliberately, too, but the man has a definite sense of humor and he doesn't hide it.

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**Author's Note:**

I couldn't begin to guess when I'll be able to figure out the next fifty, even though you'd think I'd be able to! Hope that y'all enjoyed, nevertheless!

_**Please review!**_


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